Friday, June 13, 2014

High Statin Doses Increase Risk of Diabetes

In a study covering more than 100,000 patient records in three nations, researchers with the Canadian Network for Observational Drug Effect Studies (CNODES) found that patients taking higher strength statins face an increased risk of developing diabetes.
Wednesday, June 4, 2014 (Health Data management)

The study published in the British Medical Journal, found a 15 percent relative increase in the risk of diabetes within two years of starting treatment with high potency statins, as compared with low potency statins. Patients included in the study had started statin therapy after experiencing a major cardiovascular event such as a heart attack or stroke. About two-thirds of these patients were prescribed a high-potency statin.

Statins considered to be high potency were rosuvastatin (e.g. Crestor) at doses of 10mg or higher; atorvastatin (e.g. Lipitor) as doses of 20mg or higher; and simvastatin (e.g. Zocor) at doses of 40mg or more. All other statins were considered lower potency.

To conduct the study, CNODES researchers from across Canada examined the health records of 136,966 patients who were 40 years of age or older in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. As its mandate, CNODES has the ability to analyze a large amount of anonymous patient data to assess questions of drug safety more reliably that would otherwise be possible in smaller studies.

MY TAKE:
I keep saying it, but few are listening, statin drugs are dangerous. Statins do reduce the risk of CVA (cardiovascular accident) slightly. But they do so because they reduce vascular inflammation, not because they reduce cholesterol levels.

More than half the people who suffer their first heart attack have normal or even low cholesterol. The medical response to that statistic is “see everyone should be taken statin drugs”. Putting statins in our drinking water has been a topic of discussion at cardiac conferences across the country.

Statin drugs disrupt the chemistry of cholesterol metabolism. It also limits the production of CoQ10, another fat produced in the liver. CoQ10 is necessary to run the Krebs’ Citric Acid Cycle (CAC) that produces energy for every cell in the body. (Please refer to my blog on CAC posted on Wednesday, May 7, 2014.) CAC takes glucose (blood sugar) and coverts it to energy. Without adequate CoQ10, the CAC just doesn’t work.

I believe that all statin drug therapy impairs glucose metabolism. This extensive records review suggests that high doses of statin drugs impair glucose metabolism to the extent that Type II Diabetes more frequently develops.
In all fairness, Metabolic Syndrome is a precursor to both cardiovascular disease and diabetes. This is a vulnerable population that is likely to become diabetic anyway. The statins are just pushing them over the edge before their time.

Several recent research articles have been published questioning the emphasis on cholesterol lowering therapies. A few brave scientists in the field of cardiology have even come forward to question the validity of the original research in support of statin drug therapy. However, they have been quickly criticized and silenced by their peers.

Statin drug therapy is big pharmaceutical business. It is by far the most commonly prescribed drug in the world today. Until there is a financial penalty associated with statins, rather than a financial incentive, use of these drugs will continue to increase regardless of any research articles.

THE BOTTOM LINE:
If you are concerned about cardiac risk factors, have your glycohemoglobin A1c, CRP (high sensitivity C-reactive protein), homocysteine, and L(p)a checked in addition to the serum lipids. Those tests are much more indicative of your risks than the serum lipids.

If you choose to take statin drugs, at least supplement with CoQ10 to reduce some of the risk factors associated with this class of drugs.